Smartphone addiction: how to digital detox from smart apps

To reset your brain, Gillespie says you need to reprogram that dial. It will “reset” on its own if you don’t engage in the high dopamine-producing activities for three months, but knows that’s easier said than done. “By definition, if [something is] addictive, you can’t just not do it.” To help bridge the gap, he recommends engaging in other, lower dopamine-producing behaviours. He says exercising is a great way to get a “more natural” boost of dopamine, as is socialising.

But the best way to access a steady dopamine level is by focusing on something that takes your undivided attention. That could mean solving a Sudoku puzzle, reading a book or doing an activity you find absorbing.

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Gillespie says these behaviours provide some feel-good hormones, but “nowhere near” the level you require for addiction. “So it’s like a ‘nicotine patch’ for addiction, in a way.” Over time, such behaviour will help “adjust down” your epigenetic dial, so you no longer crave those hits.

Unfortunately, two months into her smartphone-free challenge, Laura found out her father was dying. Understandably, she wanted her phone on at all times so she wouldn’t miss a call. It was then a slippery slope to reinstalling apps and a return to normal smartphone use. Nowadays, Laura has self-imposed restrictions on her smartphone use, but misses those “challenge” months. She felt more present, enjoyed “actual conversations” with people, and understood what it was like to “really live in the moment”.

This article appears in Sunday Life magazine within the Sun-Herald and the Sunday Age on sale July 11. To read more from Sunday Life, visit The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

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